One can achieve great heights with the evolving finance industry, says MAHESH SHUKLA
It’s a no brainer that the finance sector is the holy grail to a nation’s economic performance and standard of living. The industry that directly or indirectly espouses the population and businesses to fulfil their respective goals is also the one which contributes the lion’s share to the total GDP of the economy. The financial services industry stands upright as the backbone of India's robust economy with a projected growth rate of 8.5 per cent.
The new entrants into the market such as commercial banks, insurance companies, mutual funds, non-banking financial companies (NBFCs), and FinTech startups are destined to accelerate the stable growth rate of the Indian finance sector. Notable, there are around 11,522 NBFCs that are registered with Reserve Bank of India (RBI), 2,050 FinTech startups spanning across digital payments, lending, wealth-tech, personal finance and many others. and more are underway. The mobile wallet industry is also expected to grow at CAGR rate of 150 per cent to touch the $4.4 billion mark in the next four years. And, the government of India and RBI are joining the forces with the private sector to strengthen the financial services industry with policy-reforms, tech innovation, and pro-industry measures.
With such sweeping reforms, there is one thing sure to come-the far-flung wave of job creation for youths and millennials in India. Where the jobs for financial analysts, accountants, investor relations manager, and commercial bankers are and will be on the rise, the demands for financial analytics professionals, data compliance and managers, International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) professionals, and many others will grow manifold.
Offshoots of digital disruption
The financial institutions and organisations are using new-age technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, and machine learning (ML) for fraud detection, anti-money laundering strategies, and manage portfolios. With these intelligent tech solutions, the companies, providing financial support to the underserved population through the digital channels, personalise their services as per the clients’ needs, improve pricing, billing, and underwriting process, and predict the risks and threats. But, as these financial companies go data-driven for increased profitability and growth, the need for talents with tech skills and expertise is urgent.
In Mumbai, Bengaluru, Delhi/NCR, and Chennai, the jobs for financial software developers, analytics professionals, data engineers, and technology consultants in dedicated analytics and AI CoEs are raging high. The students of finance and banking should develop quantitative and technical skills along with business acumen that would enable them to bagging the salary package of nearly 13 lakhs. The salary for an entry-level financial analytics or tech professionals revolves around 6-7 lakhs.
Rise with the revival of microfinance industry
The credit rating agency, ICRA, reports that that Indian microfinance industry is going under a speedy recovery after the liquidity storm of the last year. The growth rate is estimated to be of 20-22 per cent this year with the burgeoning of NBFCs and FinTech lending startups, which signals high career prospects in the industry. Some top players perform exceptionally well in even in the volatile market conditions, while many fail to achieve their goals in the early three or four years. The reason behind the success of NBFCs and FinTechs is the strong underwriting and risk assessment system. With the recent traumatic funding crisis in the industry, it has become essential for NBFCs to augment risks management strategies.
And this is the reason why the Reserve Bank of India asked NBFCs whose assets size is over Rs 5000 crore to appoint chief risk officers (CROs) and improve their risk management practices. And here comes another job role into the mainstream-CRO. Those who are looking to build a lasting career in finance, the best option is to become CRO, a senior official in the organisational hierarchy of the NBFCs and whose sole responsibility and duty is strategising risk management practices, predicting and mitigating the risks. For this, the candidates must have professional qualifications and expertise in both finance and risk management. The compensation package of CROs would range from Rs 7-11 lakhs.
Opening doors to women professionals
Indian finance and investment industry has started embracing gender diversity, but still has miles to walk because today, men largely dominate the leadership roles. The times are changing as women continue to make their mark in the male-dominated industries. The gender gap in the finance industry is definitely a challenge, but since the time Boston Consulting Group, global management consulting firm, revealed the companies with diverse teams report better financial performance, the companies are more open to women professionals.
They can build a career in investment banking, corporate finance, portfolio management, and risk management and fill the C-suite positions in the finance companies. Their typical day will revolve around strategy-making, financial planning, risk analysis and others, the responsibilities that are growth drivers. Else, they can go for tech roles in FinTech space where the phenomenon of job proliferation is sky high. Or, entrepreneurship will be the perfect choice for them with tech innovation. After all, the finance sector holds enough potential for women from diverse educational backgrounds. Whatever be the choice, the decision should be made in early adulthood to make finance a lasting career.
The writer is Founder, PayMe India
